Editor’s Note: This is part of a series of articles about the Snug Harbor development at Buckeye Lake.
What began as a unique vision of nostalgia, luxury and convenience more than nine years ago is now taking shape as a waterfront harbor village on the serene shores of Buckeye Lake.
The community of Snug Harbor held its grand opening event on June 13, with boat rides and tours, cocktails and dinner, a national jazz act performance and a culminating fireworks display. The celebration was an appropriate way to mark the village’s dramatic evolution – from undeveloped dirt to the beginning of an active but quaint village inspired by beloved waterfront towns around the world.
The ride has been challenging and, although there is a gleaming light at the end of the tunnel, for Developer Marty Finta, there are still a lot of obstacles ahead. Luxury Living recently sat down with Finta to discuss his experience with the project and what people can expect moving forward.
Luxury Living: Where did this vision come from and what made you move forward with it?
Marty Finta: The vision came just from my life experiences. When you’re younger, you don’t realize what’s special to you – you live for the moment. But the older you get, the more things start to have meaning. You look back on your childhood and the time you had with your parents, grandparents, traveling, boating, picnicking, whatever, and realize how simple and special it was. I know now, as an adult, that traveling creates experiences of diverse cultures, food, people, etc. I knew I had the opportunity to develop a waterfront village that was close-by that had a lifestyle embracing that diversity.
LL: So the idea and conception came from personal experiences?
MF: It is very personal to me. I had a very good childhood, and to take those experiences that I had – walking down the shoreline, being at the park, being on the water, traveling – and create a place that combines a lot of those elements was my biggest goal. I wanted to package history and marry it to the future; to create those types of experiences and memories for a new generation without having to travel the world.
LL: What were the steps you took to make your vision a reality?
MF: The biggest step was realizing there will be more day-to-day obstacles than benefits. I had to put my armor on and expect the unexpected knowing there would be many challenges.
LL: Which were the most difficult steps?
MF: I think one of the biggest challenges was the adversaries. Everyone has them, and everyone runs into conflict, but it goes against my grain. I want to see people happy and that’s the point of doing this development in the first place. But it was important that we just let our actions speak louder than those words. We put a lot of hard work, effort and blood, sweat and tears into this, and the challenges will eventually lead to the end reward. Other than that, we had many construction challenges.
LL: What did the construction challenges entail?
MF: Our goal was to be a one-stop shop – to control the design, development, construction and management of the entire project. We formed multiple entities to accomplish that, all under the Triglyph name. I didn’t want one component of the process controlling us. But I do not get involved in day to day construction activities and we had a lot of nightmares during that process – from theft to breach of contract to invalid liens to gross negligence and employees just not showing up.
LL: How were those situations remedied?
MF: After dealing with those headaches, we felt it was in our best interest not to be involved in any general construction contracting services anymore, so moving forward will we have general contractors and professional building companies build for us. We will dissolve all of our general contracting companies and restructure our companies accordingly.
LL: Now that the majority of the site development work is complete, where do you shift your focus? MF: Now my focus shifts to the marketing and sales of residential sites and the construction of village amenities, which is the next phase. The village construction begins with Gabe’s Sweet Treats – an old-fashioned ice cream/candy shop that is a traditional addition to any waterfront community.
LL: Besides Gabe’s, what can the public expect next out of Snug Harbor?
MF: I’d say a couple of years down the road, they can expect a working, operating village center, and more lifestyle amenities added each year. There will be a boardwalk, a bakery/coffee shop and eventually some restaurants and other shops. It’s important to remember we are building a village, which takes time, and we will continue to build and pursue opportunities to make it the most exciting, diverse community we can. There will be a balance between being social and active or private and relaxed. It will be fun to watch it continue to unfold.
LL: What are you most excited about personally?
MF: I’m most excited about Gabe’s Sweet Treats – it’s something everyone, adults and children, can enjoy and it’s named after my 6-year-old son Gabe, so it’s very special to me. He gets excited to be there and he carries his little briefcase and talks about how he’s a developer. Watching him create these new memories with us brings everything full circle.
For more information about Snug Harbor, visit www.snugharborvillage.com.
A conversation with a builder
Luxury Living also had the chance to talk with Chris Spellacy, president of Trevor Custom Homes, LLC about why Trevor chose to buy and build at the Snug Harbor location.
“We liked the uniqueness of the niche market that Snug Harbor provides. The diversity and quality of housing planned at the village matches our commitment to high quality and individualized designs,” Spellacy says. “We were also attracted to the vision of waterfront living and thought it provides a niche in Buckeye Lake that is not being served.”
Trevor Custom Homes currently owns two lots in the Roberts Reserve area along the main lakefront. The company is in the process of purchasing three additional lots and, as a preferred builder in the development, is available for design/build projects on Snug Harbor’s lots.
Trevor’s existing home is a 3,600-square-foot authentic Mediterranean-style waterfront home. It features hand-crafted wood trim, built-in cabinets and shelving, an open living space and an open terrace with water views. As with other homes at Snug Harbor, it was designed by Sullivan Bruck Architects.
“Our future designs will also be unique and tailored to the needs of our clients, and will be in keeping with the Snug Harbor vision for quality and diversity of housing – from a large French chateau to an intimate cottage-style home,” Spellacy says. “We are excited about the future of the development and expect to participate in the successful completion of all phases of the project.”